Ex-England cricketer Panesar to contest election for Workers party

• Vivek Mishra
• 30 April, 2024

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By: Vivek Mishra

Monty Panesar, the former England cricketer, is gearing up for a new challenge, as he prepares to stand as a candidate for the Workers Party of Britain in the upcoming general election. This announcement was made by party leader George Galloway on Tuesday.

Galloway, a prominent figure known for his left-wing activism and recent reelection to parliament, disclosed Panesar’s candidacy among the 200 candidates the party plans to field for the upcoming vote.

Panesar, a renowned left-arm spinner, left his mark on the cricketing world with 50 tests for England and 167 wickets between 2006 and 2013.

Born Mudhsuden Singh Panesar in Luton, north of London, to Sikh parents who emigrated from the Indian Punjab, he became a firm fan favourite and a distinctive figure on the field in his black patka.

He will stand in the Ealing Southall constituency in west London at the vote, which is expected to be held later this year.

To be elected, he will have to overturn a 16,084 majority set by Virendra Sharma, from the main opposition Labour party, at the last national poll in 2019.

Galloway told LBC radio that Panesar “will be our candidate in Southall,” which is a majority Sikh area.

“Monty, of course, was a great left-arm spinner so we could do with him,” he said.

Galloway, a former Labour lawmaker, is hoping to tap into what he sees as disaffection with not only the Conservative government but the Labour opposition under Keir Starmer.

Starmer is widely expected to win the election, but Galloway has condemned him for his stance on Israel’s military action against Hamas in Gaza and is hoping to exploit Labour divisions on the issue.

At Galloway’s own election, the Labour candidate withdrew after touting a conspiracy theory that Israel allowed Hamas to carry out its deadly attack on 7 October last year.

Galloway said voters were rejecting the “Tweedledee, Tweedledum politics” of the Tories and Labour, as well as “culture war” issues over “race and gender, wokery and greenery and quackery”.

“We stand up for the working people. Our country is falling apart at the seams…. Not since 1941 have we been in such trouble,” he said.

(AFP)